Kerala government planning changes in Industrial Policy

Kochi: With plans to turn Kerala into an entrepreneur driven state, the state government is mulling making certain changes in its industrial policy to provide the right environment to spur the growth of startups.

"We need to make changes in our Industrial policy. There will be small changes. The draft is in the final stages and will come up before the cabinet soon", Industries and IT minister P K Kunhalikutty told reporters while giving details of the Young Entrepreneurs Summit (YES), a first of its kind initiative in the country, being held at nearby Angamally on 12th September.

The government would promote enterprises which are environment friendly, which require less land and provide employment to a large number of persons, he said.

Pointing out that Kerala was the second state after Karnataka in entrepreneurship; the minister said the state was aiming to add another 500 startups by 2016 to touch 1000.

After the 'Emerging Kerala' initiative of the state government in 2012, the state has witnessed big success in certain sectors which are driven by youth, he said.

The summit will have seven sessions spanning from agriculture and Food Processing, tourism, business Innovation and green technology, healthcare and life sciences, electronics and digital media, Additional chief secretary and Managing Director of Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC), Aruna Sundararajan, said.

Over 2500 aspiring entrepreneurs, successful entrepreneurs, innovators and young prospective investors from various educational institutions are expected to attend the summit.